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Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 124 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

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Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

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Word bank
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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: toast · bass · board · date · wound · track · bark · scale

  1. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  2. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  3. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  4. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  5. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  6. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  7. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  8. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  9. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  10. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  11. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  12. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  13. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  14. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  15. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  16. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  17. Have you settled on a ________________?
  18. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  19. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  20. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  21. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  22. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  23. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  24. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. board — a flat piece
  2. toast — a drink to someone
  3. date — the fruit
  4. track — a path
  5. wound — past of 'wind'
  6. bass — low music
  7. toast — the most admired
  8. board — a committee
  9. board — to get on
  10. bass — the fish
  11. bark — to shout
  12. bark — a dog's sound
  13. date — on the calendar
  14. toast — bread
  15. wound — an injury
  16. bark — of a tree
  17. date — on the calendar
  18. scale — size or range
  19. scale — for weighing
  20. wound — an injury
  21. scale — in music
  22. bass — the instrument
  23. track — to keep track
  24. track — a song

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

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Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com